As far as the finish goes for Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman vs. Samoa Joe at SummerSlam, the attempt is very strong to keep this one under wraps, so it’ll be interesting the last day or two when it comes to the odds. The story as it is said right now is that nobody on the writing team, no producers, and no participants except Lesnar (whose deal is that he knows everything well in advance) will be given the finish until the last minute. Between Vince McMahon and Heyman, they try to play the realism and brutality game in Lesnar’s matches at times, like the first John Cena match or the Randy Orton match where Lesnar hit them up with dangerous elbows to bleed, or when Lesnar would hard way himself on purpose to get blood as well, which would not be allowed for anyone else. The only thing we know is that Lesnar and Heyman are with the company at least through April, no matter what the outcome and storyline that follows the match.

Quote:

WWE.com inadvertently posted in their SmackDown Live recap that Baron Corbin interfered during John Cena vs. Shinsuke Nakamura on this week's episode of SmackDown Live. A run-in that obviously didn't happen ...

According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the original plan was for Corbin to run-in during the SmackDown main event and try to take out Nakamura. It would backfire and lead to him taking out Cena and Nakamura going over, ultimately leading to Corbin vs. Cena and of course Nakamura facing Jinder Mahal for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter isn't sure if it was Cena who wanted to put Nakamura over clean, which is significant in its own right, or if Vince McMahon just changed his mind. However, WWE.com leaking the original plan was a mistake.

Corbin ended showing up after Smackdown to attack Cena and Nakamura leading to Cena AA'ing him through a table.

Quote:

In a big surprise, at the 7/30 Stardom show in Shinkiba, Io Shirai returned. Shirai who many considered the top woman wrestler in Japan, had done her farewell there and was to start here. There was an issue with a neck injury when WWE did their testing of her several months back, which led to her announce she was taking time off for the neck injury and that was the reason she gave for leaving Stardom. WWE hadn’t finalized the deal, and wrestlers are not allowed to say they publicly they are going to WWE until the company announces it first ...

Shirai announced her return on 8/13 at Korakuen Hall, and that she would also be in the upcoming Five Star Grand Prix tournament (which is their version of G-1, and Jim Cornette should be proud of that name). She also issued a challenge to Team Jungle for the Artist of Stardom championship. This is because she’s not coming to WWE after all. She contacted Rossy Ogawa and Stardom on 7/28 and said that she was ready to return full-time. Nobody has publicly said WWE changed their minds at bringing her in, but obviously that is what happened. The phraseology being used for Japan is that she got some bad news and told Ogawa she was ready to come back. Nobody has directly said that WWE decided against offering her a contract due to her neck issues that they found in her physicals, but they had stalled on offering her a contract months ago when they found out about the injury while she did her medicals in the U.S.

After she did her medicals, WWE wanted her to take time off to rehab her neck. She did that and was just cleared by doctors to return to the ring after her therapy. Then WWE seemingly decided against offering her the deal. While every case is different, WWE has had a general rule of not wanting to bring in new talent that either has concussion issues or neck issues. It also could be that with Kairi Hojo and Asuka they already have two Japanese women and had discovered more women from other nationalities that they wanted to sign from the Mae Young Classic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Paul Heyman announced last night on WPIX television in New York that he would be doing a talk show with Jim Ross on 8/18 at the famed Gotham Comedy Club in New York. Heyman said if Lesnar didn't leave SummerSlam with the belt, that he and Lesnar would leave WWE and noted that in ECW, the one thing he always believed in was upholding stipulations. When he was asked about Jon Jones vs. Lesnar, he said he would leave that to Lesnar's comments already made publicly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Alberto and Paige were on the Busted Open radio show today talking about the incident on 7/9 at the Orlando Airport. They downplayed the incident, saying they argue like a normal couple but it's under the media spotlight. She said that the reason her family wrote what they did is they don't know the situation and respond based on what they read in social media. He said that they argue, and three minutes later they are fine. Alberto said that he has an agreement with GFW regarding his suspension and when it will be lifted and will be back to work soon. She said she had a CT scan earlier today and can't wait to get back to WWE once she gets clearance. Paige said Alberto can be an asshole at times but he's her asshole.

It was announced today that Aleister Black would be facing Hideo Itami at the special. The match was set up on last night's episode of NXT TV after Itami demanded respect and tried to take over the ring before Black's match with Kyle O'Reilly, with Black then laying out Itami with Black Mass when he tried to attack him from behind.

WWE then uploaded video of a post-show angle where Black and Itami brawled in the parking lot after Itami tried to ambush him. Itami had been feuding with Kassius Ohno before the program with Black began.

WrestlingInc.com is reporting that WWE Cruiserweight Classic competitor Hoho Lun has been released from his developmental deal. Lun represented Hong Kong in the tournament last year.

WWE sources indicate the release actually happened several weeks ago.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

As if the Fite App didn't carry enough quality content, they announced today they have come to terms with All Japan Pro Wrestling to carry their events via the Fite App. The events will kick off this weekend with each show priced at only $4.99 with unlimited replays included.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

A fan asked Steve Corino if you ever get in the commentary booth for WWE NXT much like he did for years with Ring of Honor:

Zero chance. Those days are over.

Plus, I love our NXT commentary team. I wouldn't be able to keep up with them. https://t.co/iNv3ZTIfPI
— Steve Corino (@WWECorino) August 3, 2017

Corino is currently a trainer at WWE's Performance Center.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Cathy Kelley looks at new WWE Network Collections on RAW General Manager Kurt Angle and Hidden Gems in this new video.

GFW World Heavyweight Champion Alberto El Patron and Paige appeared on Busted Open this afternoon to discuss their dispute at the Orlando airport last month. During the interview, El Patron discussed his suspension from GFW and said that he "is going to work soon."

.@PrideOfMexico "I'm going back to work soon. At this point I do not know exactly when. But I will be back soon." #GFW
— SiriusXM Busted Open (@BustedOpenRadio) August 3, 2017

El Patron noted that a date has been set for his return. He will not be working this weekend's GFW live events on the east coast, but he said that he'll "be back soon." GFW will hold their next set of television tapings from August 17-20 in Orlando.

.@PrideOfMexico "We've set a date for the suspension to probably be lifted. I won't be at the live events but I'll be back soon" #GFW
— SiriusXM Busted Open (@BustedOpenRadio) August 3, 2017

Likely will be by August 17th since that is when the next set of GFW Impact tapings will occur.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Following a report that Brandi Rhodes is no longer listed by Global Force Wrestling as an active Knockout on its official website, it is now confirmed that she is no longer with the organization.

According to the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Rhodes was recently released from her contract. It is not clear whether GFW opted to release her, or she asked to be let go.

A big reason for her departure is that she's being filmed for a non-wrestling television show in Atlanta, Georgia and GFW weren't cooperative about it. Rhodes debuted for Ring of Honor last Saturday and the promotion is more than willing to work with her on the show.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The situation with Amore was discussed on the 7/31 episode of “Bring it to the Table,” where our report from several weeks ago regarding his being kicked off the bus by Reigns due to heat with the locker room was acknowledged ..... The incident in question we were told that broke the camel’s back and this happened some time back, was him talking very loudly on his phone to someone and saying things that those who couldn’t help but hear him thought were negative about the business while bragging about how much money he was making from the business to that person.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

It was reported last month that Amore had significant backstage heat and was kicked off a tour bus by Roman Reigns. The story was brought up on WWE Network's "Bring it to the Table," where JBL said "the odds are completely against Enzo [Amore]" making it in WWE due to his backstage heat.

In that same episode, Corey Graves revealed he personally doesn't like Amore. He said Amore is exactly like his character 24 hours a day; with him being loud and abrasive and talking about who he partied with in Los Angeles getting old. However, Graves stated he feels Amore is valuable to the company.

There has been talk of moving Amore back to NXT, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. The idea is that it would be away from Vince McMahon where he can be a big name talent who can help sell tickets to road shows or they could move him to 205 Live, to help garner reactions on a show that struggles with that. Graves stated on "Bring it to the Table" that he feels Amore should be moved to 205 Live.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

This is a legit amazing thing, considering what it takes in, including the entire WWE product line and all the legendary rock bands and pop culture figures, but for last week at Hot Topic, top selling T-shirt was Rick & Morty Portal (characters on Adult Swim), but No. 2 was the Young Bucks Bullet Club shirt and No. 3 was the Cody Bullet Club shirt. This would be from figures gathered from stores nationwide and would be out of literally thousands of T-shirt designs carried

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Jericho is still not advertised for anything going forward so it appears his Smackdown appearances was just a one-shot surprise out of nowhere for a surprise pop and a way for Styles to get back the U.S. title without Owens losing on television. Jericho’s latest book, “No is a Four Letter Word,” is coming out in a few weeks and he’ll be starting a publicity tour for the book at that time. .. Jericho’s band Fozzy’s song “Judas,” was ranked No. 1 on the Sirius rock station Octane for the second week in a row

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

As of right now the plan is for Tyler Bate, Trent Seven, Wolfgang, Pete Dunne and Mark Andrews to be brought to the U.S. in a few weeks. Exactly what role they’ll play is uncertain. It could be appearing on either the NXT Takeover show or on the NXT TV tapings that take place right after SummerSlam. Right now the plans for the U.K. show are still on hold, since the first taping was to be in June, and nothing has been announced

As has been expected for a while, Eva Marie is officially no longer with WWE.

She announced on Instagram today: "Today is a bittersweet day, as @WWE and I have agreed to part ways. It has been an incredible 4 years, and I am truly grateful to Vince, Paul, Stephanie and the entire WWE team. I would not be where I am today without their continued support."

Marie went on to mention the moments that she got to experience in the company like visiting the troops in Afghanistan and working alongside WWE in their support of the Special Olympics. She thanked her fans and concluded by writing that she'll continue to pursue a career in acting.

WWE also posted the news on their website: "Eva Marie and WWE have mutually agreed to contractually part ways as of today, Aug. 4, 2017."

Marie was suspended for a wellness policy violation shortly before SummerSlam in 2016 and never returned to the ring, with her instead focusing on other projects. It was revealed earlier this year that she wouldn't be returning to Total Divas either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Sports Illustrated reported that WWE had no interest in signing Rey Mysterio due to not wanting to work with his management team, which would mean Konnan. Mysterio has been talking with both GFW and WWE and we had reported GFW was more likely.

Will Ospreay announced earlier today at a show in Sydney, Australia for the PWA promotion (run by woman star Madison Eagles), after he won their heavyweight championship from Robbie Eagles, that he was moving to Australia in the near future and would be back working for PWA and the other independent promotions in the area. Ospreay said he feels he can help the Australian independent scene grow while the U.K. scene doesn't need him top be there. Ospreay told us later today that he might be moving there as his base, but that is he committed to New Japan and ROH either way.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

ROH tickets for the 10/15 show in Chicago with Kenny Omega went on sale today. In just a few hours, the company has already broken its all time ticket sales record for the market and it's a lock to be one of the two biggest crowds in company history.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

HoHo Lun was announced today by WWE as having been released by his own request due to personal reasons. The release actually took place earlier in the week but WWE officially announced it today.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Friday's WWE Network programming appears to be a block dedicated to D-Generation X on the 20th anniversary of the group's beginnings on television. Starting at 3 PM Eastern, it will be One Night Only 1997. The UK exclusive pay-per-view features Shawn Michaels defending the WWF European title against the British Bulldog in Birmingham, England. At 6 PM Eastern, it will be Smackdown from November 25, 1999 featuring Triple H versus X-Pac, The Hardy Boyz versus The New Age Outlaws in a steel cage. At 7:30 PM Eastern, it will be Smackdown from December 2, 1999 which features D-Generation X versus Big Show and the Hardy Boyz in a six man tag. At 9 PM Eastern, it will be the first time airing on the live stream of Raw from September 7, 2009 which features Bob Barker as guest host with Randy Orton and Chris Masters versus DX. At 11 PM Eastern, it will be a look at of the Greatest Wrestling Factions in Beyond the Ring.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

"Hidden Gems" has become its own section in the WWE Network's Vault, indicating that more installments will be added.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

The 8/3 edition of Impact did 276,000 viewers, down from last week's 286,000 overnight viewers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

As has been reported earlier in the Elite section of the site, John Cena is advertised for all RAW TVs starting the night after SummerSlam leading up to the No Mercy PPV on 9/24.

The only RAW he will be missing is 9/18 (go home to No Mercy) as he will be with the Smackdown brand in China the night before.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Unified GFW World Heavyweight Champion Alberto El Patron remains under suspension from Global Force Wrestling, the company confirmed in a statement issued to PWInsider.com.

"Alberto El Patron remains under suspension while GFW continues its internal look at the situation."

El Patron addressed his suspension on Thursday during an interview with Paige on Busted Open Radio ... Del Rio and Paige then confirmed they will be returning to work soon and they'll be letting fans know when soon. El Patron added that a date has been set for his return and that while he will not be working this weekend's GFW live events on the east coast, he'll "be back soon."

After she suffered a shoulder injury in a match against Nia Jax last week, WWE released a video updating Bayley's status today. It claimed that she won't be able to compete at the pay-per-view following an evaluation that revealed that she separated her shoulder.

Bayley had been scheduled to challenge Alexa Bliss for the Raw Women's Championship at the PPV

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Disney announced that its acquired majority ownership in BAMTech, who partner with WWE on the Network, in advance of starting their own streaming service.

Today's G1 show in Kanagawa set things up for the B Block finals. Only Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega remain in contention heading into their match, with Okada at 13 points and Omega at 12. That means that Okada can advance with a win or draw against Omega, but Omega needs to win the match to go to the finals. Okada went to a 30-minute draw with Minoru Suzuki this morning, Omega beat SANADA, and Michael Elgin defeated EVIL to remove him from the mix.

The B Block finals will be on August 12th at Sumo Hall. The A Block will be decided the day before that, with the winner of Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito advancing to face either Okada or Omega on August 13th.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Last night[Saturday] at the WrestleCircus show where Cody Rhodes returned to Austin, TX (where his father grew up), he pinned Scorpio Sky with the crossroads on a pile of thumbtacks. Sky slammed Rhodes in the thumbtacks before the finish. Rhodes said that he wants to return to Austin and bring other Bullet Club members with him. He then auctioned off his boots, which got $1,000, that he donated to the "Austin Pets Alive" animal shelter. He also said that anyone leaving him tips on Twitch will have the money donated to the charity. Also on the show, Adam Cole & girlfriend Britt Baker won the company's tag team titles over Rocky Romero & Trent Baretta when Baker pinned Baretta. Baker took a piledriver from Baretta and jumping double knees as well. Romero thanked the fans and said he didn't know when they would see them again.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Mick Foley did an angle with Joey Ryan at yesterday's -Saturday] OTT show in Dublin, using the socko claw in the groin and then taking the flip.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

HoHo Lun did an interview with WWE.com where he explained why he asked to be released. “I went to Hong Kong for vacation about three weeks ago and that’s when I realized that my mother is sick,” Lun said. “That’s why I decided to tell Matt Bloom, the head coach of the PC, that I wanted to request my release.” The article credits Lun for helping WWE's Chinese recruits acclimate to the United States and he teases that he may return in the future.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard blog wrote a piece on Enzo Amore's heat backstage in WWE among previous reports of being kicked off of the European tour bus for being annoying, and they exclusively reveal the following:

"Sports Illustrated also learned that Amore is guilty of bringing a series of questionable guests into the locker room. The visitors broke locker room etiquette by filming and taking pictures of the wrestlers. The talent in the WWE believe that Amore–who is 30-year-old Eric Arndt–should know better."

WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley is currently running a memorabilia auction via Ebay with all proceeds going to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network.

Foley is auctioning off items that he wore over the course of his career, original handwritten manuscripts from his books and even childhood items.

On Twitter, Foley wrote:

Thanks to all who are ALREADY making the #MickFoleyMemorabiliaAuction a success. 2 hours in & almost 4K for @RAINN01https://t.co/ASamndzBhM
— Mick Foley (@RealMickFoley) August 8, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Former ECW World champion Taz announced during this morning's edition of The Taz Show on CBS Radio that he would soon be undergoing surgery on his hand in an attempt to repair nerve damage that has led to a loss of feeling and an inability to grip with right hand.

Taz noted on the show that nerve damage in his neck from his pro wrestling career has trickled down to his hand and that surgeons will be going through his wrist in an attempt to bring some of the nerves "back to life", describing it as similar to a carpal tunnel surgery but on a grander scale.

The former WWE star noted that the surgery and recovery would mean he would have to miss a few episodes of his radio show, which airs Monday to Friday from 7-9 AM EST, streaming from NYC at www.TazShow.com.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

We noted before that there has been talk of doing another Superstar Shakeup after the WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view. PWInsider notes that the idea is to do two shakeups per year instead of just one major WWE Draft. WWE previously held a roster Shakeup in April after WrestleMania 33.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Unified GFW Knockouts Champion Sienna took to Twitter last night and called out Charlotte Flair for copying her look and mannerisms.

As of this writing, Flair has not responded but she did post a photo with a "#TeaTime" hashtag this morning. You can see both posts below:

Dirtsheets sponsored by Whatever Vince is Trying to Do ... Pee Pee Dance?:

Quote:

Originally Posted by TPWW Frontpage via Triple A

Last night’s SmackDown Live brought in 2,584,000 viewers, slightly up again from last week’s 2,569,000 viewers.

SmackDown was #1 on cable for the night in the 18-49 demographic.

This time last year, the August 9, 2016 episode of SmackDown Live brought in 2,455,000 viewers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bleacher Repot

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon reportedly isn't happy with Shinsuke Nakamura after the former NXT champion inadvertently dropped John Cena on his head during a match on the Aug. 1 edition of SmackDown Live.

However, according to Sports Illustrated's Justin Barrasso, McMahon still "has not lost faith" in Nakamura's abilities.

Nakamura beat Cena to become the No. 1 contender and earn a challenge for Jinder Mahal's WWE Championship at SummerSlam on Aug. 20.

During the SmackDown bout, Nakamura hit an inverted exploder suplex that caused Cena to land on the back of his head. Afterward, Nakamura appeared to apologize to the 16-time champion, to which Cena replied, "Don't be sorry."

Though she suffered a concussion at the Mae Young Classic tapings last month, Kairi Sane (formerly Kairi Hojo) is set to make her NXT house show debut this week.

WWE advertised today that Sane will be in action at NXT's show in St. Petersburg, Florida this Thursday. Most of the television roster will be on the road while that event is going on, with a tour beginning in Los Angeles, California tonight before stops in Bakersfield, San Jose, and Sacramento.

Pro Wrestling Sheet first reported that Sane suffered a concussion at the Mae Young Classic tapings and was dealing with some neck pain, though it was noted that she was expected to be cleared to return in early August. Her working the show in St. Petersburg would mean that has happened.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

On this week’s Dinner With The King co-hosts Jerry “The King” Lawler and Glenn Moore are joined by “The Mouth from the South” Jimmy Hart to talk about Hulk Hogan and his career in Memphis. The question about a possible Hulk Hogan return to the WWE came up and both The King and Hart answered (37:44 mark of show).

Lawler: "In the wrestling world, you nerve say never. I thought it was way big overreaction what happened with Hulk in this most recent situation — the reason why he’s not in WWE at the moment. But I think that has definitely blown over. It was never a big deal to begin with. And I don’t think anybody even thinks about that anymore. I do think a lot of people would like to see Hulk come back. I think, right now, the ball is in Hulk’s court. If he wants to come back, I think he would definitely be able to come back.”

Hart: "You have seen clips of the Hulk being sprinkled into video packages lately on WWE programming. So I think one day that Hulk will be back where he deserves to be, with the WWE. I really do.”

GFW will be holding their latest media conference call later this afternoon with Sonjay Dutt, Low Ki and Trevor Lee.

The belief among those I've spoken to in the last few days is that GFW will time the ending Alberto el Patron's suspension with the 8/17 Destination X live Impact Wrestling episode.

There is scheduled to be a status conference this week in Nashville, TN in regard to the lawsuit Fraley International, LLC brought against TNA Entertainment, LLC last year. Fraley International, which handles importation of merchandise from overseas, sued over money owed from shipments of TNA merchandise being brought to the United States after they were produced in the Far East. Last April, the attorneys repsresenting TNA withdrew as their representation and filing asking the Chancery Court in Nashville to allow them to do so, citing lack of payment.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

WWE is running a poll on their website asking fans to choose what career first they want John Cena to achieve next. The options are:

*Break Ric Flair's record and win a 17th World Championship

*Win his first IC Championship

*Win the King of the Ring tournament (which would mean it presumably will be coming back at some point)

WWE is currently offering 60% Off discount coupons for the PS4 version of WWE 2k17 to WWE Network subscribers. The offer is being sent via email for those interested.

WWE is also holding a one-day only $10 Off sale on t-shirts at their online shop. No discount coupon is needed for the offer and offer itself ends at 2:59 EST, August 10th. http://shop.wwe.com/wwe-t-shirt-sale/

WWE announced today that the WWE Network would be available for the first time in mainland China.

WWE and PPTV, a Chinese sports media streaming service that carries the company's programming, will be partners in getting the Network into the final major country in the world it isn't already in. The Network will be debuting on August 18th, in time for SummerSlam weekend ...

Regarding the WWE Network in China, the price in that country will be 30 yuan monthly ($4.50) or a one year package for 198 yuan (just under $30). WWE and PPTV will split the revenue. WWE noted that the NBA has had some success with a subscription model in China.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The company is pushing that tomorrow will be the 20th anniversary of the formation of DX, which debuted on the August 11, 1997 TV show. In honor of this, the WWE Network will be doing a weekly series called Flashback Fridays, starting at 3 p.m. Eastern, which this week being a marathon of DX material.

Pro Wrestling Sheet has learned Darren Young will soon be making his return to the ring … because he’s been cleared for action by WWE‘s medical staff.

Sources tell us Young had his evaluation this week and passed as expected, therefore he’ll be able to make his return to WWE as soon as next week.

Darren underwent surgery back in early February to repair his injured elbow.

No word on when he’ll be back on TV, or if his relationship with Bob Backlund will continue, but our sources say he’s still scheduled to appear on the Raw brand.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Freemantle International, which is WWE's European DVD distributor, noted about the decision originally made not to release SummerSlam on Blu-Ray and that over the last two years, sales of WWE Blu-Rays have declined and there hasn't been enough demand to continue. However, the decision was made to release SummerSlam on Blue-Ray as a test. "We will closely monitor the performance of this release and it will directly affect our future Blu-Ray plans."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

All Japan Pro Wrestling will be available on The Fite App starting Saturday. There are six shows available on VOD. They also have an Impact One Night Only show from the GFW tapings in Las Vegas on Friday night.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

This year's Lucha Libre World Cup, which will feature talent from Lucha Underground and AAA, will take place on 10/9 and 10/10 in Tokyo.

Recently, you left Global Force Wrestling. There was a report that the company wanted a cut of your revenue from a non-wrestling-related television show. What’s the story there?

Unfortunately, that story is kind of a mess. There are some valid statements that I’ve seen, but it’s really not as dramatic as people want it to be. Basically, Cody and I were very candid with what we were doing after WWE as far as contracts go. People are confused. I never signed the contract that people think I signed with Global Force stating that they got percentages.

What I did sign was a tentative contract with Impact Wrestling when they were still Impact. That contract had a clause for me, because I was already working on some stuff in other areas of television. That clause basically said that if something else in television were to happen for me, they can’t be uncooperative. And if they were uncooperative, we would be able to part ways. And that is honestly what happened. So, I am filming something awesome in Atlanta, but I can’t say what it is.

As seen below, Boom! Studios has released a new WWE SummerSlam 2017 Special comic with cover artwork from Rob Schamberger. You can use the link in the tweet to find the special in-stock at a comic shop near you.

Regarding rumors on Dolph Ziggler's WWE status, Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that Ziggler has been off TV and pay-per-view because the company just has nothing for him creatively. The former World Heavyweight Champion is currently in the same blue brand boat as guys like Erick Rowan, Luke Harper and Tye Dillinger, where officials have nothing significant for them to do.

Ziggler worked several live event matches in July, usually losing to Shinsuke Nakamura, but his last TV match came on July 4th - the Independence Day Battle Royal that was won by AJ Styles. Before the battle royal, Ziggler's last singles TV match came on the June 20th SmackDown episode, another loss to Nakamura.

Also likely very busy dealing with the murder trial involving one of his brothers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Everyone is hurt. Nobody has missed one match. Many are keeping their injuries secret. Tanahashi is working through a right biceps tear. Naito has a right shoulder problem, that got bad with matches with Zack Sabre Jr. and Togi Makabe, the latter where, in it playing no part of the match, he was clearly in a lot of pain. He’s said to be a little better going into the Tanahashi match, and potential final match with Okada or Omega. But he’s likely got his two hardest bouts to come. Yuji Nagata, at 49, the oldest wrestler in the tournament and perhaps the best, was physically wearing down and has back issues. Tomohiro Ishii has a knee issue. Okada may or may not have a neck issue, but in his match with Suzuki, worked like a guy completely banged up and his neck was taped, although it also played into the match. Omega’s neck had stiffened up, and there was a scary moment in his match with Seiya Sanada where he landed almost on the top of his head on the floor when Sanada was out of a position to catch him on a moonsault block on the guard rail. But while it clearly banged him up at the time, apparently he was fine from it after. Evil was knocked silly at least once, if not twice.

Health status regarding all the competitors in this year's G1 Climax tournament.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The medical report on Hiroshi Tanahashi torn right biceps is essentially what was reported. It was noted that in most cases with a distal biceps tendon rupture that one would opt for surgery to repair the arm. Tanahashi said that he couldn’t be out of action for the six months after surgery. The belief was that his brachialis muscle can compensate for the function of the torn biceps so the decision wasn’t that bad

Katsuyori Shibata wrote that his doctor is very surprised about how well his recovery has gone. He also talked about being very depressed because it doesn’t feel like summer to him without being in the G-1 tournament

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

WWE has announced what will be a six-hour plus presentation for SummerSlam, a two-hour pre-show that starts at 5 p.m. and a main show from 7 p.m. until probably around 11:30 p.m. It’s almost a lock that a lot of the post-show talk will be regarding how the show went too long.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Lawler and Bill Dundee filmed a pilot for a proposed new television show called “Jerry Lawler’s Classic Memphis Wrestling.” The attempt to is sell it to a local station as a nostalgia show, since Memphis Wrestling was a television institution there from the 60s through the 90s, and particularly big from 1969 to 1987. Lawler talked about how he’d like the show to air on the WWE Network after it first has its run on Memphis television. He said he’s got a lot of the footage and claims that he owns it, although the ownership of the tape library has been in question for decades since Lawler sold the promotion and its IP, but the owners went bankrupt and nobody bought its IP in bankruptcy court

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The reason the Hardys were off all the shows this weekend was because they couldn’t fully clear up whether Jeff Hardy would be able to cross the border given his felony drug conviction from years ago. They were working on it and time ran out, and he had to be pulled from the shows. Originally Matt Hardy was going to be in Toronto for Raw to shoot an angle with The Revival for their match, but with Scott Dawson’s injury, that was pulled from the show. The expectation right now, while not a certainty, is they’ll be able to clear it up in time for the next Raw Canada swing

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Sports Illustrated reported that WWE had passed on Rey Mysterio because of issues with his management team, citing Konnan in particular. While they had talked, we’d heard the Mysterio talking with WWE was overblown in the first place and that he was looking at GFW because it would allow him more freedom to do side projects and Mysterio at this stage of his career isn’t going to be able to work the WWE schedule ...

Another aspect is Mysterio had a very good contract with Lucha Underground, and the fact he’s looking elsewhere when he was the biggest name in that company, is not a strong sign for Lucha Underground as you’d think they’d want to keep their biggest name and not have him sign with GFW. Mysterio had a great deal with LU, working a minimal number of matches and a deal that would have made him one of the higher paid wrestlers in the world, although the offer he signed was less then the numbers offered when he was first told about their interest, but was far more than he could get anywhere else and he could still work indies and such with that deal. But after a couple of years with no movie (never promised but it was part of the pitch), no house show touring, long delays between tapings, no merchandise to speak of and money issues in getting what he signed for, it looks like the money isn’t there for him to be able to be offered what his prior deal was. It looks like both sides are parting ways and that’s where the GFW talks came from

Regarding the Sports Illustrated story, Konnan said he had not negotiated for Mysterio when it comes to WWE. The way the story was reported was that WWE had rebuffed Mysterio stating they had problems with his management team, specifically Konnan, although that story stated it was for Konnan not coming to WWE to do Max Moon after they spent all that money on the gimmick. That was 25 years ago and almost nobody except Vince who was in the company then is even in the company now. Konnan said that if Mysterio was wanting to go to WWE, and anyone in WWE saw his involvement as a negative, that he’d stay out of it and Mysterio would negotiate for himself

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

WWE officially announced Kyle O’Reilly as having signed, even though his appearing at the last TV tapings confirmed it. They didn’t make the announcement until his first match with Aleister Black aired. As for Adam Cole, even though Cole & Britt Baker won the Wrestle Circus tag titles from Rocky Romero & Trent Baretta on 8/5 in Austin, TX, Cole is headed here. It’s just a question as to how and when they introduce him. I don’t know that it’s happening at Takeover Brooklyn, but that’s certainly possible

Quote:

"How Kurgan turned into an Oddity, after WrestleMania where [Austin] took the [world title] belt from Shawn [Michaels], I'm at the afterparty and Kurrgan's there with his wife and Kurrgan says, 'my wife is going to have me dancing. I'm going to get up and dance and I'm sure you're going to have a laugh.' And I go, 'dude, don't do it.' He's like, 'why?' I go, 'don't let Vince see you up dancing.' And he's like, 'well, my wife wants me to dance, blah, blah, blah.' I'm like, 'don't do it.' He got up, he's dancing, disco dancing, he's pretty good, but I'm not watching him. I'm watching Vince and I saw [him] catch [Vince's] eye and I'm like, 'he's not a giant anymore.' And within a month, he was in a tuxedo dancing and that's the night I learned 'don't do anything in front of Vince that you don't want to do in front of millions of people."

According to the Observer, WWE is still interested in doing a 4 Horsewomen (WWE) vs 4 Horsewomen (MMA) feud and could start planting the seeds as early as next month.

Also according to the Observer, WWE is about to suffer a severe drop in their 3rd largest tv market in terms of viewers due to a new TV deal made. The new deal for South Africa will move WWE shows from its regular channel to a pay channel. WWE is expected to suffer a drop as high as 80% in viewers as a result.

Tetsuya Naito beat Hiroshi Tanahashi earlier today to win the A block in the G-1 Climax tournament. Naito will face the winner of tomorrow's Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega match. If Okada vs. Omega goes to a 30:00 draw or double DQ or double count out, Okada will advance to the finals. Omega needs a win in less than 30:00 to meet Naito in the finals. Since I've been flooded with questions on this, Okada vs. Omega 3 should start at 7:45 a.m.to 8 a.m. Eastern time, as far as the match itself goes. The show will start at 5:30 a.m.

Spoiler tags used since its related to the G1 Climax A Block finals from earlier today for those who haven't watched it yet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Scott Dawson had the surgery for his torn right biceps this week and the current timetable for a return is early December. Pro Wrestling Sheet reported this earlier today and WWE has confirmed it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Regarding rumors of Gabe Sapolsky working for WWE as a producer in NXT, the story is that he was at the last set of tapings and they were talking regarding different ideas but he said he is not with WWE, has no official role there and there's no talk of him getting an official role there, and he's still with the WWN group.

Debunked an earlier report from PWInsider stating he was in talks to become a possible member of NXT's Creative.

About Rousey attenting the Mae Young Tournament taping Levesque said, "I don't know that I ever once looked out at the crowd and saw her without this ear-to-ear grin on her face. She was like a little kid after every break there would be when I would talk to her -- like a little kid. What that means? Unsure. What that means down the line? I think she's unsure."

But as to whether she is training to appear for WWE, Levesque said, "I think [Rousey] is in a transition period in her life and is in a great place. I think she's getting married soon or something. Look, she has got a lot going on, but I'm all about creating opportunities. That's what the Mae Young Classic is all about -- creating opportunities for these women that they never had before. If Ronda Rousey wants that opportunity, I'd be happy to talk to her about it."

The 8/10 edition of Impact did 277,000 overnight viewers, up slightly from last week's 276,000 viewers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

As noted early, PROGRESS Wrestling will run shows tomorrow in Queens, NY and Sunday in Boston, MA (that event is sold out) with a number of WWE contracted talents appearing, including UK champion Pete Dunne.

PWInsider.com has learned that after this weekend's events, the UK talents working the loop as well as PROGRESS promoter Jim Smallman are all being sent by WWE to Florida, where they will be at the WWE Performance Center. Some will be there for several weeks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Jericho revealed on his latest Talk Is Jericho podcast that he was in Richmond, Virginia to film his role in an episode of Southpaw Regional Wrestling and to interview Tyler Breeze and Fandango for his podcast. But he got talked into doing a match.

"That's actually why I'm here today, to film that show Southpaw and talk to you guys," said Jericho. "And now I got roped into having a match."

Pretty much confirms the rumors of Jericho's appearance being a one night only deal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

As noted, former WWE Champion The Rock revealed his updated Brahma Bull tattoo earlier today. You can see the evolution of the trademark ink at this link. RAW announcer Corey Graves took advantage of the moment and invited Rock to appear on his "Superstar Ink" series for the WWE website. Graves tweeted the following to The Great One:

Hey @TheRock, badass new tattoo!

I have this show, @wwe #SuperstarInk...it could totally use some #electrifying!

As noted, former WWE Champion The Rock revealed his updated Brahma Bull tattoo earlier today. You can see the evolution of the trademark ink at this link. RAW announcer Corey Graves took advantage of the moment and invited Rock to appear on his "Superstar Ink" series for the WWE website. Graves tweeted the following to The Great One:

Hey @TheRock, badass new tattoo!

I have this show, @wwe #SuperstarInk...it could totally use some #electrifying!

Raw started higher and fell more last night than in previous weeks, ending up at 3.22 million viewers, which was a one percent drop from last week's number. Last week's rating was the best for the show since April 17th ...

My feeling on this is the huge first hour was curiosity regarding what would be said about Ric Flair, which was covered early and it was clear it wouldn't be talked about again. Even in males 18-49, which usually has its best hour in number three, it dropped 11 percent from one to three ...

Managed to do the impossible and break Love & Hip Hop's grip on the #1 ranked demo spot for the week.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Ric Flair remains in critical condition as of last word in a hospital in Atlanta.

Flair underwent colon surgery yesterday to remove a blockage that was the catalyst for a number of different health issues that followed including kidney failure. Those in WWE were made aware that Flair is on kidney dialysis as well. A key is being able to get the kidneys back functioning.

The surgery was considered a success, but as noted there are more issues involved.

With fans and people within the pro wrestling industry sending well wishes for her father, Charlotte Flair posted a message thanking people for their support this morning.

She wrote on Instagram: "Hi guys, On behalf of my family and I, we want to THANK everyone for the prayers, texts, calls and support. Our Dad is a FIGHTER and your continued thoughts and prayers MEAN THE WORLD to us. We will update everyone when we have more information."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

PWInsider reported today and a WWE source confirmed to us that Adam Cole has officially signed with WWE.

The fact this was confirmed before NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn means there is a good chance that will be his debut.

Cole signing with WWE has been expected for at least one year and would have happened sooner had the WWE and Ring of Honor legal issues not taken place. Once WWE started signing guys like Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly, Cole, who the company has had eyes on for years, was imminent as far as coming in.

Cole's debuting has been a foregone conclusion since he finished up with ROH and New Japan. Fish and O'Reilly both debuted on NXT TV recently.

Cole said goodbye to ROH at their War of the Worlds pay-per-view in New York and post-PPV television tapings in Philadelphia in May and has since worked some indie matches.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Mike Kanellis posted a message on Instagram about overcoming an addiction to prescription drugs. He wrote that he kept the problem from everyone and it has haunted him for three years after dislocating his kneecap. Kanellis noted that the addiction started to spiral out of control over the last year and a half until he decided that he couldn’t keep hurting his wife and himself in this way. He said that he was sharing the message as a symbol of hope to anyone else battling addiction issues.

GFW announced its decision this morning to strip Alberto El Patron of his Unified World Championship which would seem to indicate he will not be appearing at the television tapings this week.

Sources in the promotion had told us that the decision had not been made over the weekend.

Because they are taping television through the end of October, everything leading to Bound for Glory, if Alberto is not at television, and it appears he won't be, all the main event plans would have to be changed and a new champion would have to be crowned.

Ed Nordholm would have been the person with the final say on this matter and we had heard that even though Alberto was cleared of all charges regarding the Orlando Airport incident, that his long-term behavior had been a concern.

After being stripped of the GFW Unified World Championship yesterday, Alberto El Patron released a statement on Instagram. He claimed that being stripped of the title was his idea and that the sides came to an agreement that works best for both parties.

Brandon Howard has an article for Fightful.com analyzing this year’s G1 Climax from a business perspective. Total attendance for the 19 shows was 80,639 people, up from 74,383 in 2016. The estimated gate for the final night at Sumo Hall was $1.3 million, also up from an estimated $850,000 the last two years.

SummerSlam is returning to Brooklyn, New York for a fourth straight year.

WWE announced last night that the Barclays Center would be hosting SummerSlam weekend again in 2018, with four shows in four nights. There will be an NXT TakeOver special on August 18th, SummerSlam on the 19th, Raw on the 20th, and SmackDown on the 21st.

WWE released the official word to the New York Post before also posting an article on their website. The announcement comes ahead of the company's upcoming trip to the Barclays Center for NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, SummerSlam, Raw, and SmackDown starting this weekend.

SummerSlam first took place at the Barclays Center in 2015 and tickets have either sold out or mostly sold out right when they're put on sale every year that the venue has hosted the pay-per-view. Prior to that, the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California was home to the show for six straight years from 2009 to 2014.

The G-1 tournament ended up being amazing. Tetsuya Naito beat Kenny Omega in the finals although the highlight was the return of Katsuyori Shibata ...

Both Kenny Omega and Tetsuya Naito are said to be fine after all the chances they took in their match this afternoon in Tokyo. There were tons of scary spots, but the worst two were a piledriver off a table to the floor, which was not supposed to happen, and a superplex spot that ended up with Naito being DDT'd on the top of his head on the top of the ring post.

On a lighter note, the stuffed cat, Darryl Takahashi returned and gave Naito a paw bump after he won the tournament. Darryl had a bandage on his hind paw after he was torn limb from limb by Bad Luck Fale, until he was put back together again.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Kevin Owens celebrated 3 years with WWE this past weekend. He is now a one-time WWE NXT Champion, a three-time WWE United States Champion, a two-time WWE Intercontinental Champion and a one-time WWE Universal Champion. Owens tweeted the following on Saturday while preparing to face United States Champion AJ Styles at SummerSlam in Brooklyn this coming Sunday:

3 years ago today, it was announced that I had signed with @WWE. Worked out pretty great for everyone...

The "Table For 3" episode with WWE Hall of Famers Ric Flair, Sting and Ricky Steamboat that was scheduled to premiere after last night's RAW did not air, apparently due to Flair's weekend hospitalization and the surgery that he underwent on Monday. A one-hour "Ric Flair: Forever The Man" special aired instead. That special can currently be found in the "Originals" section of the WWE Network. No word yet on when the "Table For 3" episode will air.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

WWE has a special John Cena collectible at ToysRUs to help benefit Special Olympics. You can buy it by clicking here.

The Barclays Center sent out a tweet today advertising Universal Champion Brock Lesnar for the post-SummerSlam episode of Raw. The tweet was taken down after complaints about spoiling the SummerSlam main event, though Lesnar is advertised for more dates after the pay-per-view as well.

Spoiler tag used since it could be related to the results of the Universal title match at SummerSlam.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Paul “Triple H” Levesque conducted a conference call with the pro wrestling media earlier this afternoon ahead of TakeOver. When it comes to working with other promoters, such as Gabe Sapolsky, Levesque noted that these promoters aren’t officially employed by WWE, but there’s an opportunity to be around each other and learn. He also talked about the Mae Young Classic, saying that some people who worked on the crew said it may even be better than the Cruiserweight Classic. When asked about 205 Live’s scheduling conflicting with the Mae Young Classic final on September 12th, Levesque noted that the logistics haven’t been finalized yet.

Ric Flair’s fiancee Wendy Barlow has given an update on the condition of Ric Flair, stating that he is still in critical condition. She said that she took Flair to the hospital on Friday with severe abdominal pain. From there, it progressed to multiple organ problems. She said that it was not colon surgery he went under, but a different surgery.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

PWInsider posted quotes from an interview with Bayley earlier today regarding her injury. She noted that the injury was a grade two separation and that she would be out for a few months.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The New Day defending their tag titles against The Usos at SummerSlam has been moved to the pre-show. Big E and Xavier Woods will be the New Day team in that match.

On this week’s Dinner With The King co-hosts Jerry “The King” Lawler and Glenn Moore dedicate the episode to “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair. They two talk about Flair’s condition, his career and time in Memphis. The King also shares some classic audio and stories from their handful of matches over the years ...

Also, Lawler shares that his pilot episode of Jerry Lawler Classic Memphis Wrestling has been picked up and they will begin shooting episodes soon.

"We did a pilot episode of our classic wrestling show here in Memphis. And it got picked up! September 9, we are going to get Bill Dundee back in the studio and we are going to shoot the first episode of Jerry Lawler’s Classic Memphis Wrestling. The Memphis wrestling that everybody grew up here in Memphis watching Saturday mornings. That’s going to be a weekly show coming up in Memphis on Channel 30, CW 30 here in Memphis.”

Tyrus announced on his social media accounts this afternoon that he would not be working this week's GFW Impact Wrestling tapings in Orlando Florida.

In his video posting, Tyrus claimed that he was being treated like a "second-class citizen" and not being used the way that he should be. He said he had been playing phone tag with GFW officials all day and if they wanted to treat him that way, he would not be working the tapings.

You can see the posting below:

Full version on @tyrussmash ig @IMPACTWRESTLING pic.twitter.com/ejQ5URAFTl
— Tyrus (@PlanetTyrus) August 16, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

In regard to Ric Flair's condition, he is still currently in critical condition in Atlanta, GA.

A source close to the situation told PWInsider.com that while reports are out there that Flair had surgery on his colon, those are incorrect. It appears those stories began because Gene Okerlund mistakenly said colon on social media.

The surgery was actually on Flair's bowels due to a massive obstruction caused by a health issue that was complicated by other health issues that Flair had been dealing with, including heart issues that he was already aware of. The situation turned dire when Flair's kidneys shut down due to the obstruction and he is currently undergoing dialysis that will hopefully fix the situation and allow them to return to normal.

Flair was in extremely bad shape several days ago but the outlook, we are told, is better. However, we were cautioned that he is still in critical condition and anything can happen, so he's not out of the woods yet and is expected to need at least one more surgery in the weeks to come.

This is NOT a case where Flair will wake up tomorrow and leave the hospital the next day.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

While it was known that Nikki Bella was expected to sit ringside for the John Cena vs. Baron Corbin match this Sunday at Summerslam, she may have someone to keep her company.

Brie Bella will be in New York City this weekend, PWInsider.com has confirmed. Brie will be in town to take part in filming of material for Total Divas over Summerslam weekend.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

While GFW announced this week that Alberto El Patron has been stripped of the Unified World Heavyweight Title due to the recent domestic incident with Paige at an Orlando airport, it looks like Patron vs. Low Ki is still scheduled for this week's GFW Destination X episode on POP. As noted, GFW Executive Bruce Prichard will be at Destination X to make an announcement on the title that "will rock GFW and IMPACT to it's very core."

GFW's announcement on Alberto mentioned that no decision had been made on when he will be brought back from suspension but we've noted that the plan has been for the suspension to end with Destination X.

Tyrus has been under used by GFW. Been the lackey for a few main eventers that could have turned into big fueds for him but they haven't pulled the trigger on him. Guess he wasn't a big enough star in WWE.

Supposedly he had a really pissy attitude when he was given the Funkasaurus gimmick. Despite the fact that it was getting over he felt he should've been booked as a monster and he was just bitching about it the whole time.

Supposedly he had a really pissy attitude when he was given the Funkasaurus gimmick. Despite the fact that it was getting over he felt he should've been booked as a monster and he was just bitching about it the whole time.

We have an update Ric Flair. Flair is doing significantly better than he was earlier in the week, but he is still in critical condition. He was given an external pacemaker and his heart is beating at normal levels and getting stronger. He is still battling an infection and on kidney dialysis. This is going to be a very slow process.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sports Illustrated

Per a source close to the family, Flair did not undergo heart surgery nor did he suffer a heart attack. Upon medical attention, what was thought to be an intestinal blockage wound up requiring part of his bowel be removed.

Immediately after SummerSlam, the WWE Network will air a preview special for the Mae Young tournament, which starts on 8/28.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Former WWE Intercontinental and Tag Team champion Shelton Benjamin has signed a deal to officially return to WWE, PWInsider.com has learned.

WWE planned to sign Benjamin last summer as part of their brand split and even ran videos promoting his return to the company, only to learn the 42-year old had a torn rotator cuff during the standard pre-signing medical testing. Benjamin underwent surgery to repair the injury while WWE quietly stopped running the videos ...

There is no word when Benjamin will return to TV or what brand he will be assigned to as of this writing, but one WWE source stated it would be "soon."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Topps and WWE are partnering for Connor's Cure. They are making a special autographed card with Stephanie McMahon and HHH offered on Topps.com exclusively along with some Great Moments in SummerSlam history cards with proceeds going to Connor's Cure. The card will be available Monday.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

GFW announced Latin Night on Tuesday at Universal on the final day of this week's TV tapings, which started today. It will be a joint promotion between GFW and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Orlando. They are pushing that GFW features a number of Latin stars including LAX, Garza Jr., Laredo Kid, El Hijo del Fantasma and Drago.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Another match has been added to the SummerSlam pre-show.

It was announced in a video today that The Hardys would again team up with Jason Jordan against The Miz, Curtis Axel & Bo Dallas on Sunday. The New Day defending their SmackDown tag titles against The Usos is currently listed for the pre-show as well, along with Neville getting his rematch against Akira Tozawa for the Cruiserweight Championship.

The Hardys & Jordan vs. The Miztourage is also a rematch from this week's episode of Raw. The faces won that first meeting after it was turned into a six-man tag when The Miz got disqualified in a singles match against Jordan due to Axel and Dallas' interference.

The addition of the six-man tag brings the SummerSlam lineup up to 13 matches.

While appearing on the "From the Top Rope" podcast alongside her sister, Brie Bella gave one of the strongest indications yet that Daniel Bryan will eventually end up wrestling again -- whether it's in a WWE ring or somewhere else.

Brie said about Bryan possibly coming back: "I told Bryan, ‘You do have a daughter, so always remember that. But if the doctors finally give you the green light,’ I say, ‘Go. Like this is your dream and passion. You have one life to live and I will never hold you back -- because I love to wrestle, and I would hate if someone told me you can’t do it."

"And if WWE doesn’t allow it, then I said, ‘Go somewhere else. It’s all on you,'" She added. "Obviously he would love to be able to get back in that WWE ring, but I know for a fact my husband is going to find his way back to the ring. Like, he honestly is.”

Brie also noted that Bryan has been going to doctors and undergoing testing since retiring. She said that he found Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and has undergone about 40 treatments across the country. Dave Meltzer wrote in this week's edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Bryan would have likely first looked into those around WrestleMania week.

Regardless of being cleared by outside doctors, Bryan would need WWE's Dr. Joseph Maroon to reverse his decision if he is to wrestle for the company again.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Jim Cornette returned to Global Force Wrestling at tonight's TV taping for Destination X, which will air later tonight on Pop.

Cornette had worked for the company as an on screen authority figure and as a producer behind the scenes before being let go by Dixie Carter during a time period where she was purging anyone close to Jeff Jarrett.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

As of midnight this morning, Asuka surpassed Rockin' Robin's long-standing record of 502 days as WWF Women's Champion. This means that Asuka is now not only the longest-reigning women's champion of any of that title's incarnations, but she has also now become the longest-reigning champion in WWE history period, other than the years-long title reigns achieved by Bruno Sammartino, Bob Backlund, Pedro Morales, and Hulk Hogan in the pre-national expansion days, none of which are likely to ever be surpassed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Goldberg tweeted the following to Asuka on her 500 day title reign as NXT Women's Champion: "Congratulations and good luck to @WWEAsuka on her incredible streak as @WWENXT Women's Champion. We'll be watching. #WhosNext #NXTTakeOver #shesnext"

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

The WWE NXT "From Secret to Sensation" DVD and Blu-ray will be released on November 14th, according to WrestlingDVDNetwork.com. Below is the synopsis:

In recent years, NXT has emerged as an incredible box office draw for WWE with sold out live network specials from Brooklyn to Dallas to the United Kingdom! But things weren't always this way: watch WWE's "developmental" system churn out future Hall of Fame superstars and grow from its underwhelming infancy in Louisville through 2017!

A countdown of the greatest NXT superstars of all-time, featuring brand new exclusive interviews with all the major stars (current & former) that helped make NXT into a unique and popular brand.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

"The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero announced on social media that he is leaving GFW.

Dinero worked for TNA as a wrestler from 2009-2013. He returned to the company in 2015 as a color commentator using the name, Da Pope. He returned to action on the April 5th episode of Impact Wrestling, losing to Lashley in a street fight

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Another thing we’ve heard is that they were at least looking into, if not doing, a live music-accompanied entrance for Aleister Black for his match with Hideo Itami, like they’ve done in the past for Bobby Roode and Shinsuke Nakamura. Code Orange, the band that does the events theme song and Brendan Garrone, of the group Incendiary, playing him to the ring. Incendiary is big on the New York scene so this should be great if it does happen..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

HHH did a media call and talked about the Mae Young tournament. He said that the binge release, where four or five episodes will be released on 8/28 and the rest on 9/4 was an experiment. He said that the viewership for the Cruiserweight tournament faded in the later weeks of the tournament so this was an experiment to see what would happen if everything was released over a two week period instead of a ten week period. He also said it hadn’t been determined exactly what the situation would be on 9/12 regarding whether it would just be one match, or a one-hour show with other matches leading to the championship match, or what the situation would be regarding 205 Live that week

Zayn is raising money for Syria, a cause called “Sami for Syria” to raise money for a mobile clinic. They’ve hit their original goal of raising $48,000. He said that from 8/14 through 8/20, he will match every dollar donated up to $10,000

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

As far as the U.K. ratings are concerned, the most up-to-date numbers we have are for 7/31 and 8/1, where Raw did 29,000 viewers and Smackdown the next night did 19,000 viewers. This is for the live showings which start at 1 a.m

Some perspective on how RAW and Smackdown have been doing in the UK. They were in the 100k weekly range only a few years ago.

Daniel Bryan was the guest on Edge and Christian’s podcast this week. One of the highlights from the interview was him discussing his forced retirement due to his concussions, primarily the lesion that was found in his brain. He says that he was originally cleared by three different doctors, two of which WWE recommended. WWE still would not clear him, and instead they sent him to do some experimental testing, which is where the lesion was found. When he told this to one of the doctors that originally cleared him, that doctor told him that a lesion was a vague term when it came to brain injuries, that something may be there, but not necessarily a lesion. When talking about his brain and reflexes, Bryan noted that he found out the testing they did on him, and the results thereafter, noted that while his reflexes were slower than that of NFL or other athletes that have taken the test, they were not slower than a normal person, which he considers himself to be.

Former WWE Intercontinental and Tag Team champion Shelton Benjamin has signed a deal to officially return to WWE, PWInsider.com has learned.

WWE planned to sign Benjamin last summer as part of their brand split and even ran videos promoting his return to the company, only to learn the 42-year old had a torn rotator cuff during the standard pre-signing medical testing. Benjamin underwent surgery to repair the injury while WWE quietly stopped running the videos ...

There is no word when Benjamin will return to TV or what brand he will be assigned to as of this writing, but one WWE source stated it would be "soon."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Triple H appeared on CBS Sports’ “In This Corner” podcast ahead of SummerSlam. When asked which promotion is WWE’s biggest competition, he said: “When you say, 'What's the No. 2 promotion?' and 'WWE doesn't have a promotion knocking on its door and pushing them,' Raw and SmackDown do. Raw and SmackDown have a promotion right on their tail pushing them to do more. That promotion is going to run a show on Saturday night at the Barclays Center, and it's called NXT."

Impact ratings got a boost from last night’s Destination X special, with the show doing 320,000 viewers as compared to last week’s 277,000.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Jim Cornette as an authority figure and Taryn Terrell were surprise debuts at last night's first night of the Impact TV tapings. Impact will be taping constantly over the next several days, finishing up on Tuesday. There will be 12 weeks of tapings done this week, taking the company through the end of October and everything leading to Bound for Glory is being taped.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

John Hennigan, using the name Johnny Impact, a spoof on his old Johnny Nitro name in WWE, will debut on Impact next week.

Quote:

A fan jokingly asked Meltzer on twitter if the heated verbal exchange between him and Corbin was the reason why Baron lost his Championship match, replying to which he revealed that John Cena and Mojo Rawley are the reason behind it:

While Dave didn’t open up much about the issue, another report from Cage Side Seats shed some more light on how the two mentioned stars were responsible for it.

According to it, Officials lost faith in the Money In The Bank winner because he couldn’t stand in the verbal battle against John Cena. His twitter rant with fellow SmackDown roster member Mojo Rawley only contributed to Official’s distress.

While it’s widely believed that Corbin wasn’t ready to hold the WWE title, it’s also true that there were many other ways to take the contract away from him and the quick defeat which added nothing to any of the involving star’s profile could have been avoided.

We expect to receive some more updates on Baron Corbin’s failed cash in, in the next few days and we’ll keep you posted as new details come to light.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

As seen below, WWE and PUMA have released a new SummerSlam collection of gear for Foot Locker stores.

WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg is scheduled to appear at the WWE 2K18 media event in New York City tonight, according to PWInsider. No word yet on if Snoop might appear with cousin Sasha Banks this weekend as she challenges Bliss for the title.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Sunday's WWE Summerslam is not yet sold out, according to TiqIQ. They sent work that as of Friday morning, both lower level and floor seating was still available through Ticketmaster from $400. There's over 1,000 tickets listed on the secondary market with cheapest seats listed for $99. Lower level seating is available from $269 with ringside from $450. The $99 starting price marks the cheapest secondary market "Get-In" of the past 3 Summerslams at Barclays Center.

Of the surrounding events, Tuesday's Smackdown Live is the hottest on the resale ticket, with tickets starting at $42. Saturday's NXT Takeover starts at $38 on the resale market, and Monday's WWE Raw is the cheapest of the lot, with tickets listed for as low as $19.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Dolph Ziggler appeared on The Tom Shillue Show with Fox News' Kennedy and Jimmy Failla this week. During the show they discussed the terror attack in Barcelona and President Donald Trump's controversial response to the attack in Charlottesville, VA last weekend. All the panelists agreed that Trump didn't handle the situation ideally, however Ziggler felt that Trump would have been criticized if he denounced white supremacists immediately anyway. Ziggler felt that people would have said that if he mentioned those hate groups by name, people would have seen it as Trump giving them a nod. You can watch the segment below, Ziggler's comments about Trump's response in Charlottesville start at the 10:30 mark.

WWE announced in celebration of SummerSlam they have opened own GIPHY channel to celebrate some of the PPV's biggest moments over the years. In the announcement, WWE wrote: "GIPHY is the largest search engine for GIFs online, and powers popular apps like Facebook, Twitter, Slack, WhatsApp, Tinder, Gmail and more!" WWE has already posted over 600 gifs on the channel

WWEShop.com has a SummerSlam sale starting through today and ending Sunday night, August 20th at 11:59pm PT. You can take 20% off orders $25+, 25% off $50+ and 30% off orders $75+ by clicking here and using code SLAM at checkout.WWEShop.com has a SummerSlam sale starting through today and ending Sunday night, August 20th at 11:59pm PT. You can take 20% off orders $25+, 25% off $50+ and 30% off orders $75+ by clicking here and using code SLAM at checkout.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

In an interview with USA Today's "For the Win" section, Samoa Joe talked about why he wears a towel to the ring:

"I think partially it was the grapplers that I enjoyed wore a towel to the ring and they looked like they were ready to rock and roll. Mike Tyson used to come out with the towel poncho. I didn't get the towel poncho. Just the towel. It's something I just started to do and never stopped."

Update to WWE's lawsuit against CM Punk in regards to medical claims as website Fightful reports the WWE is currently asking for CM Punk to pay around $120k in legal fees as part of a subpoena request demanding more information and documentation. Punk is arguing WWE papered the numbers ($240k) to squeeze him out of more money. Punk is also arguing his agreed share should be around $40k instead. http://www.fightful.com/exclusive-cm...ost-him-120000

Monday’s post-SummerSlam Raw brought in an average of 3,404,000 viewers, up from last week’s 3,233,000 viewers.

That’s Raw’s highest number since the Superstar Shake-up episode on April 10, 2017, which did 3,429,000 viewers.

This time last year, the August 22, 2016 post-SummerSlam Raw did 3,315,000 viewers.

Raw was #1, 3, and 4 on cable in the 18-49 demographic for the night. A pre-season NFL game between the Giants and Browns on ESPN was #2 with 3,574,000 viewers.

Hourly breakdown:

8PM: 3,416,000
9PM: 3,581,000
10PM: 3,216,000

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

When Bobby Roode lost his NXT Championship last Saturday, the only question was how soon it would take for him to arrive on the main roster.

It turns out that we didn't have to wait very long. Roode made his debut on SmackDown tonight by defeating Aiden English, with Roode hitting his Glorious DDT to finish the match ...

Shelton Benjamin is the newest addition to the SmackDown roster, nearly a year after being set to return to WWE.

In a backstage segment on SmackDown, General Manager Daniel Bryan was talking to Chad Gable, who was growing tired of hearing about Jason Jordan’s new singles career -- he was worried about his own. Bryan said he understood that, and that is why he made a deal with Kurt Angle: in exchange for Jordan, Angle would help Bryan sign one of his friends.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The domestic violence charges against Paige have been dropped. A representative for the 9th Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s office told TMZ that the case is closed because the the victim, which would be Alberto El Patron, did not want to press charges.

Bodybuilder Dallas McCarver, boyfriend of Dana Brooke, passed away early this morning, TMZ reported. He was just 26. It appears he choked on food and was found unconscious shortly after midnight. He was then transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police say there’s no sign of foul play. Brooke, who spoke to TMZ, told McCarver’s fans to stay strong.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

It was announced today that Tony Schiavone will return to pro wrestling announcing by calling the action at MLW: One-Shot on October 5th. He’s done virtually no pro wrestling broadcasting since the final episode of WCW Monday Nitro in 2001. He will be joined by Rich Bocchini, formerly Rich Brennan of NXT.

NEVER Openweight Champion Minoru Suzuki will have his first United States match in 25 years next month as he is scheduled for the Ring of Honor Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view and subsequent TV tapings on September 22nd and 23rd in Las Vegas.

New Japan Pro Wrestling announced Suzuki and KUSHIDA as appearing for ROH on those dates, noting that they will leave the September New Japan tour after the September 16th show in Hiroshima to head to the US.

Suzuki, who was an MMA pioneer that UFC attempted to book on its early shows but at the time Pancrase didn't want its top stars doing UFC, has never been among the talent sent previously to ROH, and he was not at the Long Beach New Japan shows.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

On a week where the eyes of the fight world are on the UFC lightweight champion making his debut in a boxing ring, a budding megastar with a troubled past has once again given the UFC a black eye.

TMZ is reporting Tuesday night that UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones tested positive for the anabolic steroid Turinabol and has been stripped of the title he won by knocking out Daniel Cormier last month at UFC 214 -- his first fight back since coming off a one-year ban for his first USADA violation. A second positive failure could mean up to a four year ban from the sport.

UFC confirmed the news, saying the positive test was taken on July 28th after Jones weighed in.

Global Force Wrestling taped again last night[Saturday] for an episode of Impact that will air on September 7th. The show featured the debuts of AAA talent Pagano, El Texano Jr. and Taya Valkyrie. The show ended with an angle where Jeremy Borash announced that Bobby Lashley was quitting GFW. Lashley came out and said he wanted one final match in the promotion, and he wants it to be against Moose.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

There are plans to air a special on Madusa aka Alundra Blayze in September, timed with the finals of the Mae Young Classic.

We are told that the week the Classic airs live from Las Vegas on 9/12, 205 Live will indeed air following the finals. It's a good thing they are broadcasting from Vegas.

September will also feature the second season of WWE's animated series Storytime.

The September Collections for the Network's VOD are said to be dedicated to Sting and The Undertaker.

For those of who you have asked about these two series, I was told that WCW Thunder and Sunday Night Heat are both in line to be added to the Vault section later this year. I am hoping personally they keep adding some more World Class and old school WWE house shows.

There are no plans to add the Table for 3 episode with Ric Flair, Sting and Ricky Steamboat until Flair's health situation improves to the point he is out of the woods.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Several fans were ejected from the Barclays Center during the Finn Balor vs. Jason Jordan match on Raw when beach balls they were bouncing around ended up over the barricade and in the ringside area. There had been a ton bouncing around during the taping after the incident at Summerslam. My guess is those items will soon be added to the list of prohibited items at WWE events.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

John Cena is currently filming Transformers: Bumblebee but is already being eyed for another potential Hollywood franchise film that is being adapted from a classic '80s TV property - Knight Rider.

ScreenRant.com is reporting that a comedic reboot of the property from The Weinstein Company has been eyeing both Cena and comedian Kevin Hart for leading roles. Cena is envisioned as playing Michael Knight, the role that made David Hasselhoff a massive international star while Hart was pitched as the voice of KITT, the futuristic super-car that Knight drives. The idea is to do a take on the series similar to the feature film version of 21 Jump Street, turning the original concept into an action comedy.

The original series aired for several years on NBC in the early 1980s and has seen subsequent made for TV sequel series and films in the past, most recently a 2008 series (which was quite good) but only lasted one season.

The Wrap has an interview here with WWE Hall of Famer "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, who was promoting the new season of Broken Skull Challenge on CMT. During the interview, Austin was asked about wrestlers using someone else's finisher and the right way to go about it.

"There's different ways to go about it," Austin said. "Sometimes people will check with other guys. I'm down with anybody using the Stunner. I would prefer that it be used as a used a finisher, and not as the current routine with the DDT, where it's basically one of the lamest false-finishes in the business after being one of the most devastating finishers in the history of the business."

As seen on RAW last night, WWE started planting seeds for a Roman Reigns vs. John Cena feud, which would suggest that the match will be taking place soon and not at WrestleMania.

Dave Meltzer reported on last night's Wrestling Observer Radio that the current plan is once again for Brock Lesnar to face Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania 34. At one point Cena vs. Reigns had been rumored for WrestleMania after WWE briefly changed the SummerSlam main event from being Brock Lesnar defending the WWE Universal Championship against Braun Strowman to Lesnar vs. Reigns.

WWE later changed the SummerSlam main event to a Fatal 4-Way featuring Lesnar vs. Reigns vs. Strowman vs. Samoa Joe, and the scheduled WrestleMania main event was back to Reigns vs. Lesnar.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Emma recently spoke with NewsHub to promote the September 13th WWE live event in New Zealand and commented on her recent "#GiveEmmaAChance" social media campaign:

"There are so many talented females on our roster, so yes it can be hard to stand out, but in saying that I have one of the biggest social media following on the entire WWE roster. It has really worked for me recently because of my fans, the comments I had been getting from them made me react to it and you can see it's really paid off in the last few weeks. It's about time too, the whole #GiveEmmaAChance thing is real. I mean when do I get my chance at the championship, I have never had that and it just goes to show how social media can help."

Coming on the heels of SummerSlam, SmackDown had its biggest audience since April's roster shakeup episode, coming in at 2.685 million viewers. That was up six percent from last week.

It was a stronger than usual night for cable TV viewership as, despite that high number, SmackDown was only sixth on cable, trailing news shows on CNN and Fox News. It was first in the 18-49 demo with a very strong 0.87 rating.

SmackDown was actually slightly down from last year as the post-SummerSlam episode in 2016 had an audience of 2.714 million viewers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

It appears that the severity of Big Cass' knee injury is as bad as was initially feared.

WWE posted an update on Cass last night, with it saying that he will have to undergo surgery. Dr. Chris Robinson noted that it looks like Cass suffered a torn ACL and possibly a medial meniscus tear. Robinson said that they would have to wait for a radiologist to evaluate Cass' MRI before making any final determinations.

If Cass did tear his ACL, the injury would keep him out of action for several months. Robinson said that the typical recovery time from the injury is nine months.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

Along with recap and fallout from TakeOver: Brooklyn, tonight’s episode of NXT includes matches that were taped before the special at the Barclays Center on Saturday night. Those matches are Pete Dunne & Wolfgang vs. Tyler Bate & Trent Seven (which was Dunne’s first match back since being busted open in a match and missing PROGRESS’ weekend in the US earlier this month), Peyton Royce vs. Sarah Logan, and Lars Sullivan attacking No Way Jose.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Anthem's Ed Nordholm has said on the record that he feels GFW has ownership of the Broken Hardys gimmick.

Matt Hardy tweeted the following, which certainly seems to make that claim a bit tenuous.

FUN FACT-Benjamin, Maxel & Scribe weren't paid & DID NOT sign releases from TNA/GFW to allow their images to be aired on ANY media, esp TV. pic.twitter.com/W8fVhpKehk
— REBORN by FATE (@MATTHARDYBRAND) August 23, 2017

Twitch announced a partnership with AAA that will feature the platform streaming Triplemania XXV in both English and Spanish for free on Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern time. There will be a “best of” Triplemania marathon leading up to the event.

Numerous sources have confirmed to PWInsider.com that former X-Division champion Low Ki is gone from Global Force Wrestling, having departed over the course of this week's TV tapings.

There are several different accounts making the rounds. One version is that there it was a financial dispute that led to the departure. Another version (from sources within GFW) states that Ki was not happy with the creative for him going forward as the original plan for him leading into Bound for Glory was to be part of an Ultimate X match while he wanted to be in the GFW championship mix. I can understand that mindset as Ki was built to being a title challenger for Patron and being added to LAX, so him being slotted back into to the X-Division, logically, makes little sense.

The one thing all accounts are in agreement with is that Ki made the decision to leave the company. He was not let go. A GFW source stated the departure was "amicable."

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Following a number of incidents involving beach balls at Summerslam and Monday Night Raw this week, WWE officially banned not just beach balls but all pool-related paraphenalia from last night's Smackdown.

We are told an edict from WWE was issued to all security staff at the Barclays Center informing them that beach balls, pool noodles or any other inflatable items that could be bounced around were banned from the event. There were several moments where fans sent beach balls out to be bounced around during Smackdown's broadcast, but the balls were quickly confiscated by Barclays Center staff and removed from the arena.

One would think the ban will be permanent going forward.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Former ECW World champion Taz is undergoing surgery on his hand today in an attempt to repair nerve damage that has led to a loss of feeling, muscle atrophy and an inability to grip with right hand.

Taz has nerve damage in his neck from his pro wrestling career has trickled down to his hand. Surgeons will be going through his wrist in an attempt to bring some of the nerves "back to life", similar to a carpal tunnel surgery but on a much grander scale.

The surgery and recovery means Taz will have to miss a few episodes of his radio show, which airs Monday to Friday from 7-9 AM EST, streaming from NYC at www.TazShow.com.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

John Cena's move to Monday Night Raw reportedly has WWE officials salivating over potential marquee matches against the new era.

This week "The Franchise" made his first appearance on Raw in over a year, and many viewed the move as a business decision to draw bigger ratings for WWE's flagship show. But Sports Illustrated's Justin Barrasso reports that the move was made with an eye to the future as Cena will be counted on to elevate the up-and-coming superstars, namely Roman Reigns.

"Vince McMahon wants Cena to elevate and give the rub to Roman Reigns," Barasso wrote. "The prevailing factor behind Cena's move to Raw is all about his opponents. The decision was not made solely because Cena is going to draw ratings, but rather because of who Cena is going to draw ratings with."

"I did not see or hear him mentioned at all [backstage at SummerSlam]. I dress in the talent relations room where at one point or another everybody on the card came through that room and I never saw him. But you know what? Here’s something that I just realized. He may have been there because they were doing scans for a new game. Everybody that was on the show that night, myself included, had to be scanned. This company, it’s not the 2K people, it’s a different game that’s gonna be coming out next year. So everybody had to have their face scans and their body scans.”

From the recent Dinner With the King podcast episode where Lawler debunks the Undertaker rumors and also starts a new rumor of a new WWE game in development not by 2K Games.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

This week's "Flashback Friday" series of programming on the WWE Network will focus on SmackDown turning 18. The content begins at 3pm EST on the live stream with the following classic blue brand episodes airing:

The man who played the clown in the Gentleman's Duel between Jack Gallagher and Brian Kendrick on last night's WWE 205 Live episode was indie wrestler Rory Gulak, younger brother of WWE cruiserweight Drew Gulak. As noted, the Duel ended with Kendrick putting Gallagher through a table to set up a No DQ match between the two on next week's 205 Live show.

Recent episode of the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast show had Sami Zayn as the guest talking about WWE evolving beyond stereotypes, Jinder Mahal's gimmick, and if his character is meant to be an annoying babyface. http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/...ical-gimmicks/

During a recent episode of The Ross Report podcast, Jim Ross revealed he and Lita had to redo commentary for the Mae Young Classic due to WWE suddenly changing their minds on how they wanted it to be presented. Also rumors of one of the participants having heat backstage causing some plans to be changed. https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCirc..._and_lita_had/

Due to an ankle injury that he suffered earlier this month, TK Cooper won't be able to compete in this year's Battle of Los Angeles.

PWG officially announced the news last night, with Joey Janela being confirmed as Cooper's replacement in the tournament. Janela will be taking on Sammy Guevara in place of Cooper on night two.

Cooper and Travis Banks (as the South Pacific Power Trip) were scheduled to face The Young Bucks in non-tournament action on night one, but that match is now off and The Young Bucks won't be appearing on the first night. They'll still be teaming with Kenny Omega against Penta El Zero M, Rey Fenix & Flamita on night two.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

It looks like WWE will be doing a Rock clothing line in some form since they've applied for a trademark for The Rock for clothing purposes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Former ECW champion Taz underwent surgery on his hand yesterday in an attempt to repair nerve damage that has led to a loss of feeling, muscle atrophy and an inability to grip with hisright hand.

Taz took to Instagram last night, noting that the surgery took longer than was originally intended because surgeons needed to do more intricate work than they originally believed they would need to. They also did work on Taz's left thumb due to the beginnings of issues with that extremity as well.

The surgery and recovery means Taz will have to miss a few episodes of his radio show, which airs Monday to Friday from 7-9 AM EST, streaming from NYC at www.TazShow.com. The plan is for Taz to return tomorrow with a video and audio feed from his home as he is currently unable to drive from Long Island to CBS' studio in Manhattan.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

An update on the Low Ki departure. The financial story that was making the rounds that we mentioned yesterday has continued to be shot down by multiple sources, who all state that it was more a difference of opinion on where he was going to be slotted going forward. The company wanted him back in the X-Division for Bound for Glory and going forward after that. Ki, who had been positioned as a title contender for Alberto el Patron, wanted to remain in that realm. We are told Ki has not been issued a release and remains under contract through October. He had been a great part of revitalizing the X-Division in recent months.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Ricky Steamboat is in the process of trademarking his name. He did have a previous trademark that was filed in 1987 that was cancelled in 2009. He applied for another trademark also in 2009 that was abandoned later that year. His ex-wife Bonnie applied to trademark his name in 2013 but that was abandoned the following year. For some reason, The Honky Tonk Man tried to trademark his name in 2010 but was unsuccessful too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

The MLB Network will air a special SummerSlam edition of Play Ball this weekend, featuring The Hardys and other WWE Superstars. The WWE footage was filmed during SummerSlam weekend in Brooklyn, as seen below:

Homicide did not appear at the recent GFW TV tapings but he is not injured, according to PWInsider. Word is that the company opted to not bring the LAX member in as he wasn't needed to help further the current LAX storyline. PWInsider adds that GFW officials were much more judicious with how many talents they brought in for these tapings. There were a number of talents based out of the Northeast that were not brought in.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 411Mania

According to The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Rusev reportedly lost to Randy Orton at WWE Summerslam in seconds because it was WWE’s way of starting a program between the two. The idea behind it is that it was a “fluke loss” for Rusev. It was also done to give Orton a PPV win after his poor run of PPV matches with Bray Wyatt & Jinder Mahal, and not to punish Rusev.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

WWE posted "5 things you need to know about NXT's newest Superstar, Adam Cole," including the number of current WWE Superstars he's wrestled in the past, being inspired by Bruce Lee and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, and his catchphrase, "Bay Bay!" WWE also posted a gallery showing him working for ROH and other promotions. Cole made his NXT debut over the weekend at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III, when he (along with Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish) took out the newly crowed NXT Champion, Drew McIntyre.

You need to get educated on @WWENXT's newest Superstar @AdamColePro, and we can help with that...BAY-BAY! https://t.co/gIogjDaeTV
— WWE (@WWE) August 24, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

As noted, there is apparently backstage heat on Baron Corbin, which resulted in him cashing in the Money In The Bank contract and losing. That was followed by Corbin losing a basic match to John Cena at SummerSlam on Sunday night. When WWE uploaded a clip from the match on their YouTube channel, they only showed Cena's entrance.

It was rumored that Corbin may have had heat over some of the comments he's made on Twitter, including to a military veteran, which he apologized for. However, Justin Barraso of Sports Illustrated appeared on Wednesday's edition of the Wrestling Inc. podcast, as seen above, and said there was another reason for his heat.

"I heard the kiss of death was Cena," Barasso said, which you can watch at the 4:30 mark of the video. "[Cena said] that Corbin wasn't ready. I can't say anymore right now, that's kind of what I'm trying to work on as we speak.

"I haven't heard about the social media," Barasso continued. "I mean, he's a heel right? So he should play one on social media. I don't think that was the issue, but then again they kind of pick and choose who they defend in those cases, Raj. I don't know, but right now, I don't think that's [social media] the reason."

There were apparently some rumors floating that Rusev and Lana requested their WWE release. The rumor was never posted here at Wrestling Inc.

Lana swiftly shot down the rumor, as seen below.

@LanaWWE did you ask for your release from @WWE???
— Bryan Hopkins (@dh_bryan) August 23, 2017

That's called don't believe the pathetic villagers that pretend that they are "journalist" with real facts... hahahahah!!!! https://t.co/EfaoxRsdhJ
— CJ (Lana) Perry (@LanaWWE) August 23, 2017

Source of the rumor was the Dirty Sheets podcast show which has a habit of making BS sheet news.

Quote:

Prior to SummerSlam, it appeared that The Miz was going to be involved in a feud with Jason Jordan for a while and the son of Kurt Angle will get a shot at the Intercontinental Championship sooner or later.

However, the only match these two had was a 6 men tag team match at SummerSlam in which Jordan teamed with the Hardy Boys and was defeated by the Miz and the Miztourage.

After this, the two stars didn’t interact on this week’s episode of Raw. Now it appears that this feud is over and WWE is planning something else for both the IC title and the Miz.

During the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer talked about the main event of this week’s episode of Raw and speculated that Samoa Joe could be next in line for a shot at the title.

Meltzer noted that their tag team match on Raw was possibly the start of a new rivalry and it could culminate in form of an Intercontinental Championship match at the upcoming No Mercy PPV.

It was also noted that if The Miz does gets involved in a programme with Samoa Joe the later may turn face for the feud and it shouldn’t be a surprise if he ends up snatching the belt from the former WWE Champion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The four days in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center saw NXT draw 10,300 fans on 8/19, SummerSlam on 8/20 was the lone sellout, with about 13,200 fans, Raw did 12,100 on 8/21 and Smackdown did 11,500 on 8/22. The Smackdown crowd was well up from what they would have gotten anywhere else. But it was different from the previous two years when they did three nights, and all three nights sold out in advance. Part of the difference is that scalpers took a bath on last year’s NXT show, so the only show they heavily bought was SummerSlam, which was the one that had the most interest.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

GFW has announced its own streaming service called The Global Wrestling Network. The one thing they should try and do with it is include shows from The Crash, NOAH and AAA, their partner organizations. The Impact shows will go up on the network and they will be available free. They also announced they will be coming to Germany, Switzerland and Austria “sooner rather than later.”.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

A new idea for New Day, and this may explain their quickie title win and loss this past week, is to not only make them the longest reigning tag team champions in WWE history, which they are, but to establish them as the so-called greatest tag team of all-time down the line by holding the titles more times than any team in history. Right now they have three title reigns. The record would be the Hardys and Edge & Christian, who each have seven title reigns..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

People have been very high on the women’s tournament which will have its first several episodes released together on 8/28. People raved about it live but they did a lot of post-production work which I’m told makes it even better. Levesque was asked this past week regarding the format of the finals on 9/12 and how that night will be done regarding the usual 205 Live show that would take place. There is nothing official right now, but the last working plan was to shoot a one-hour woman’s final, airing live right after Smackdown ends in Las Vegas. As noted before, many, if not all of the 32 women are being brought to Las Vegas, including several being flown in from Japan or the U.K. just for this show. The idea is to have a series of other women’s matches, three being the going number right now, on that show.

Some other sheet news includes:

Wrestling Observer stated their web host was recent hit with a DDOS attack causing the Observer Forums and paid services to be down for a while.

The Bellas announced they will be launching their own wine brand called Bella Radici.

Also for those interested, WWE released a new series of 8-bit wrestlers shirts including Randy Savage, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Dusty Rhodes, Jake Roberts, Iron Sheik, and Shawn Michaels on their official online store. http://shop.wwe.com/search?q=8-bit

In a "WWE Did You Know" type fact, today is the two year anniversary of Braun Strowman's debut on WWE's main roster. Strowman celebrated the occasion on Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/BYMD9bRnxAE/

In another "WWE Did You Know" type fact, Miz recently passed Ultimate Warrior to become 6th all-time in combined days as Intercontinental champion in WWE history. Miz celebrated the occasion on his Instagram page. https://www.instagram.com/p/BYMPV8OjdiF/

After over 500 days as NXT Women's Champion, Asuka has vacated the title and could soon be on the WWE main roster.

An in-ring segment where she relinquished the championship closed tonight's NXT TV tapings at Full Sail University, with it being noted that William Regal has (in storyline) begun negotiations for her to move up to Raw or SmackDown. The locker room emptied as she departed NXT and Triple H came out to give her a bouquet of flowers and take the title.

Asuka capped off her run as NXT Women's Champion by defeating Ember Moon at TakeOver: Brooklyn III last Saturday night. It was reported by WWE that she had suffered a broken collarbone in that match and would be out of action for several weeks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The Enzo Amore debut on 205 Live did more than 1 million YouTube views which is better than anything does on that show. The biggest numbers this week were the Lesnar-Strowman angle with 4 million, John Cena's segment with 2 million and Bobby Roode's debut with 1 million.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Carmella, girlfriend of Big Cass, posted the following update on her Twitter:

He's in more agony over the lack of pizza than he is over the surgery ?????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/5RtidhMmDX
— MS Money in the BANK (@CarmellaWWE) August 25, 2017Big Cass had his surgery yesterday. Carmella wrote that he's in more agony over not being able to eat pizza than he is over the knee operation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

WWE is pushing that Jessika Carr will be the first female referee ever with her appearances in the Mae Young Classic this coming week. That's not the slightest bit true, by the way, as half the women's roster has worked as a referee and the first that I know of would be Rita Chatterton in the mid-80s.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

The 8/24 edition of Impact did 296,000 overnight viewers, down from last week's 320,000 overnight viewers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Where is Dolph Ziggler? Is he on his way out, or do they just have nothing for him right now?

Ziggler returned to WWE TV this past Tuesday. He told PWInsider.com over the weekend that he had requested for time off TV. He had been working live events that entire time.

Reason likely related to the botched burglary murder trial involving one of his brothers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Impact announced on social media following: last night's episode that the following Global Force talent will be at AAA Triplemania XXV tomorrow

They announced that Andrew Everett and DJ Z will be a part of a four-way tag team match on the show. The X-Division competitors were revealed as a mystery team facing Scoria and Cuervo, Drago and Aerostar as well as AAA Tag Team Champions Monster Clown and Murder Clown.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Kurt Angle spoke with Myles at the WWE 2K18 Kickoff over the weekend and was asked about a potential in-ring return with WWE. Over the summer, it was hinted that Angle could meet Triple H in the ring, but that has yet to come together. On getting back in the ring, Angle responded it could be sooner than later.

"Well, you can talk to Vince McMahon about that," laughed Angle. "No, but I think it will happen, I'm guessing end of this year, early next year. It ultimately is up to Vince McMahon, he's gonna make the decision."

Jimmy's Famous Seafood in Baltimore, which is frequented by WWE talents when the company is in town, ran a social media campaign where they promised to donate $1 to Make-A-Wish for every "like" that a tweet on Roman Reigns received. The campaign ran for 24 hours this week and raised $12,200. As noted, Reigns granted another wish when he met Wish Kid Adam at Monday's RAW in Brooklyn. Donations were at around $3500 before Reigns re-tweeted the campaign to his followers. You can see both tweets from Jimmy's below:

For every "like" this tweet receives by noon Thursday (8/24), we will donate $1 to @MakeAWish! #TeamworkMakesTheDreamWork pic.twitter.com/U2XkPZnQ6B
— Jimmy's Seafood (@JimmysSeafood) August 23, 2017

???? We did it! Thanks to you, we will be donating $12,200.00 to @MakeAWish on behalf of @WWERomanReigns and the #RomanEmpire! ???? pic.twitter.com/CsnJuvvFTV
— Jimmy's Seafood (@JimmysSeafood) August 24, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Dave Meltzer indicated in the latest edition of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter that Kyle O'Reilly and Adam Fish were put with Adam Cole in WWE NXT because of Cole's size as a heel. It was noted that the feud with Cole vs. NXT Champion Drew McIntyre brings an interesting dynamic with a small heel battling a large babyface.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

WWE sent out a survey to fans this week asking to select their 10 favorite WWE Superstars, NXT Superstars or WWE Legends. It should be noted that Hulk Hogan doesn't appear in the list of legends on the survey. Some of the legends on the survey include Bruno Sammartino, Dusty Rhodes, Eddie Guerrero, Goldberg, Ric Flair, Roddy Piper, Shawn Michaels, Sting, Steve Austin, Randy Savage, The Rock, The Undertaker, Triple H and The Ultimate Warrior.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

As seen on SmackDown Live this past Tuesday night, Shelton Benjamin returned to WWE television after seven years. Benjamin was set to return to WWE last year when the company announced their brand extension. Vignettes aired on WWE television hyping his return, however plans were nixed after a shoulder issue was found while taking the company's physical.

While rumors of Benjamin returning to WWE have been floating since Benjamin was cleared to return action in March, The Wrestling Observer reports that Benjamin didn't officially sign his WWE contract until last week.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TPWW Frontpage via Triple A

Ric Flair is still hospitalized and in critical condition in Atlanta after undergoing surgery almost two weeks ago for a bowel obstruction, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

However, things are apparently looking up and Flair appears to be getting better each day, though he is not “out of the woods” yet. Flair is now conscious and speaking, but is still on dialysis and his kidneys are still not functioning properly. There is also an infection that needs to be cleared and Flair will likely require surgery for a pacemaker. He is currently using an external pacemaker, which is stabilizing his heart beat.

pic.twitter.com/5Xudk4CdYh

— Charlotte Flair (@MsCharlotteWWE) August 24, 2017

What a beautiful Friday in Parts Unknown. The sun is shining, the grass is green, and I am the current 2-time @WWENXT Women's Champion.

Recent episode of Sean Waltman's X-Pac 12360 podcast show had Kenny Omega as the guest talking about his favorite matches, comedy vs serious wrestling, Daryl, and hinting at his time as Bullet Club's leader near its end. http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/...e-bullet-club/

WWE recently gave well wishes to Mauro Ranallo as he heads to Las Vegas to announce tomorrow's Mayweather-McGregor fight. According to the Observer, fight itself is already on track to become the most betted event ever in sports history. http://www.wwe.com/shows/wwenxt/arti...?sf109199923=1

One of the wrestlers contracted by ITV for their World of Sport project confirmed rumors of GFW and Jeff Jarrett being the main reason why the project is basically dead. Too much bickering between the sides and contracts needing to be changed due to things Jarrett demanded. https://snapmarenecks.com/2017/08/24...h-sha-samuels/

In terms of compasrisons, same week last year had 110k more viewers. In terms of weekly rankings, RAW took the #1, #2, and #4 spots.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

The latest updates on Ric Flair's condition following the health issues that he's been battling continue to be positive.

WWE posted an update on Flair's status today, with it noting that he is recovering and set to begin physical therapy shortly. That came after Wendy Barlow, Flair's fiancee and formerly Fifi the Maid as an on-screen character in WCW, announced the news on Facebook.

She wrote: "I wanted to update everyone on Ric's progress as So many people have been reaching out and offering their Prayers and Support. He is doing very well for a Man who has been through so much! He will begin Physical Therapy shortly and will be stronger than ever and back out enjoying all the fans sooner than you would think. I can Honestly say I have witnessed a Miracle."

A message from Flair's social media accounts was also sent out this morning. It said: "Sometimes you have to get knocked down lower than you have ever been, to stand up taller than you ever were. The Nature Boy will be back better than ever. Keep up the well wishes!"

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

WWE officials have confirmed that Xavier Woods will be undergoing a medical evaluation today for an apparent left knee injury that he suffered during Monday's SmackDown brand house show in Texarkana, Arkansas.

News of the injury appeared on social media as soon as it happened last night. A video of it was later tweeted out, with it showing Woods immediately grabbing his left knee when being put down by one of the Usos after going for a tornado DDT.

Woods rolled to the apron and eventually out of the ring. The match went to its finish, then Big E, Fandango, and Kofi Kingston motioned for medical attention as Woods continued to grab his knee. The video ends with referee Charles Robinson putting up the "X" symbol.

Woods had to be carried to the back by Kingston, Big E, and a WWE physician after the match was over and was clearly in great pain.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

While playing WindJammers with Becky Lynch and Renee Young, Woods stated that he had an MCL sprain. Becky Lynch noted that she recently had a similar injury and that it shouldn't take longer than a month to heal. Lynch added that she wrestled the whole time with the injury.

Woods didn't specify if he had a grade 1 or a grade 2 tear. A grade 1 tear can take up to a week to heal, while a grade 2 can take 2 - 4 weeks. Regardless, Woods shouldn't be missing much action.

Samoa Joe, who was scheduled to headline Raw tonight against John Cena, missed the show due to a knee injury.

The injury was suffered most likely at a Saturday night house show in Jonesboro, Arkansas, where he faced Cena. Joe missed both the Sunday night house show in Tupelo, Mississippi, causing the card to be rearranged, as well as not being able to wrestle on tonight's Raw ...

Right now the word is that Joe will be out of action for six weeks or less.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Observer

There was an incident involving Rosemary (Holly Letkeman) and Sexy Star (Dulce Garcia) at last night's Triplemania show that resulted in Rosemary's elbow popping from an armbar finisher.

The reports are that Garcia put the move on legitimately to end a four-way match for the Reina de Reinas title that also involved Lady Shani and Ayako Hamada.

Making things worse for Sexy Star was her trying to blame Rosemary for the injury and refusing to apology until forced by Vampiro. Already got blacklisted by at least one company with other wrestlers refusing to work on shows she is booked.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Cleveland.com reported the brother of Smackdown Live star Dolph Ziggler, Donald Nemeth, was sentenced yesterday to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty last month to involuntary manslaughter, aggravated robbery and kidnapping charges in relation to the January 2016 shooting of 34-year old Joseph Mascol at an area hotel.

Championship Wrestling from Hollywood announced that former WWE and GFW champion Alberto el Patron would debut for the promotion in advance of their deal this fall where the promotion will air on 110 CW Network affiliated stations across the country. Patron will be working a number of dates for the promotion starting with their 9/10 taping at the Oceanville Pavilion in Port Hueneme, CA, his first appearances on American television since his GFW suspension last month. It is expected, however, that he will be returning to GFW and could even be working the Bound for Glory PPV on 11/5.

CWH also announced that Jake "Jack Swagger" Hager wll be working their 8/23 taping.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Donovan Dijak has relocated to Florida in advance of his start at the WWE Performance Center.

Only a matter of time till he makes his official debut.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PWI

Primo Colon, who has been out with a knee injury, is at the WWE Performance Center this week working out in advance of being cleared to return to the ring.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar is not currently scheduled for next Monday's RAW in Omaha. He is slated to appear on RAW the following week on September 11th in Anaheim, which is his last scheduled RAW before the No Mercy pay-per-view on September 24th. His last currently scheduled WWE date is the RAW live event on Saturday, September 30th in Winnipeg.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Also today at WWEShop.com, you can 30% off select t-shirts and 20% off select championship titles by clicking here and using code TITLESANDTEES at checkout.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

John Cena and Roman Reigns took part in a noteworthy verbal confrontation on last night's episode of Monday Night RAW. The war of words got personal at times, with Reigns stating that Cena buries younger talent while Cena called Reigns "a cheap-ass corporately created John Cena bootleg."

Dave Meltzer reported at F4WOnline that the segment was "completely" scripted ahead of time. The main verbiage for the promo was mostly from the writing team and was not Reigns or Cena ad-libbing, although Reigns did get lost once and Cena called him out on it.

We noted earlier that Samoa Joe was scheduled to face Cena at last night's show, however missed it due to a knee injury. Meltzer noted that while Joe's injury caused changes to the show, the Cena - Reigns confrontation was always the plan for RAW and was not added due to the show being revised.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

Today, the first set of episodes for the Mae Young Classic were uploaded to the WWE Network and it was announced during one of the shows that Kacy Catanzaro and Shadia Bseiso have signed with the company.

Catanzaro gained attention on NBC's American Ninja when she became the first women to ever complete the show's qualifying course and has made Sports Illustrated's "Fittest 50" list. Back in January, she tried out for the WWE (which you can see in the video above) and talked about making the transition to the WWE.

"I think a lot of the things from my background, from gymnastics to obstacle course racing - the physical and the mental, the speed, agility, strength, all of that - [and] being able to mentally prepare for that and go in front of a lot of people and be on point that second that you have to... I think that all of that could be a really big advantage for me coming into the WWE."

Shadia Bseiso tried out for WWE in Dubai and is a TV personality with a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Bseiso is also fluent in both English and Arabic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WrestleInc

We reported last week that Enzo Amore's backstage heat has gotten even worse lately for some unknown reason, according to Dave Meltzer in the latest edition of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

On the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer noted that Amore was backstage sometime in the last couple of weeks bragging about his life in L.A. when he's not on the road. It was noted that Enzo was talking about all the stars he's hanging out with and "he won't shut up."

That's likely not going to get any better this week. As noted, Enzo was at the Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor fight last night in Las Vegas, and showed his $10,000 ticket on Instagram, which WWE posted a story on today. Enzo then name dropped and posted several photos with celebrities on his social media,